Vol. VIII. No. 86. 
IMPERIAL INSTITUTE JOURNAL. 
[February, 1902.] 
37 
THE IMPERIAL INSTITUTE. 
SPECIAL MEETING OF THE GOVERNING BODY. 
A very important Meeting of the Governors of the Imperial Institute was held 
on Saturday the 21st December, 1901, at York House, St. James’s Palace, under 
the Presidency of His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales. 
The following Members of the Governing Body were present: — H.R. H. The Prince 
Christian, Lord James of Hereford, The Lord Chancellor, Lord Kelvin, The Earl of Crewe, 
Lord Sandhurst, Lord Iveagh, Sir Frederick Abel, Colonel W. T. Makins, Sir Robert 
Herbert, Sir Charles Elliott, Sir J. Wolfe Barry, Mr. F. A. White, Mr. A. Prevost, 
Mr. J. M. Paulton. 
Representing the Government of India. — Sir Owen Tudor Burne, Sir Tames Peile, Sir 
Henry Bliss, Sir Steuart Bayley, Sir F. F. Adam, Sir Raymond West, Mr. A. Cadell, 
Mr. J. S. Gamble, Mr. W. Coldstream, Mr. W. C. Benett, Mr. G. W. Vidal, Mr. T. W. 
Plolderness. 
Representing Canada. — Sir Henry Tyler, Mr. Thos. Skinner, Mr. C. A. Duff Miller. 
Representing New South Wales. — The Hon. IT. Copeland. 
Representing Tasmania. — The Hon. A. Dobson, 
Representing Cape Colony. — The Hon. Sir David Tennant. 
Representing Natal. — Sir Walter Peace. 
Representing Hong A'ong, — Sir Wm. Robinson. 
Representing Straits Settlements. — Sir Cecil Smith. 
Representing Gibraltar , Malta, Cyprus, Bermuda , Fiji , Falkland. — Gen. Sir Robert 
Biddulph. 
Representing Jamaica, Bahamas , Windward Islands, Barbados. — Sir Henry Norman. 
Representing British Honduras. — Mr. J. M. Currie. 
Representing the South-eastern, Midland, and Northern Districts of England . — 
Mr. R. M. Littler, Mr. F. Elkington, Sir Lowthian Bell, Sir B. C. Browne. 
Representatives for the time being of Associations. — Sir John Evans, Sir John Watney, 
Mr. J. E. Reynolds, Mr. Geo. Beilby, Mr. W. J. Davis, Mr. C. D. ITigham, Mr. W. H. 
Maw, Mr. Chas. Hawlcesley. 
Letters expressing regret at inability to attend were received from the following 
Governors: — The Archbishop of Canterbury, The Lord Chief Justice, The Lord Mayor of 
London, The Earl of Ducie, Lord Elgin, Lord Rothschild, Lord Strathcona, Sir Henry 
Fowler, The Lord Provost of Edinburgh, Sir J. Taubman-Goldie, The Hon. R. A. Grainger, 
Mr. J. I. Rogers, Sir Henry Waring, Sir Daniel Cooper, Mr. Wm. Emerson, Mr. Austin 
R. Whiteway, Sir James Musgrave, Sir Wm. IT. Preece, Mr. Howard Spensley, Sir Wm. 
ITouldsworth, Mr. John R. Wigham, Sir John Llewelyn, Mr. W. Langdon. 
Sir Horace Tozer (Queensland) also expressed regret at having been accidentally 
prevented from attending. 
In opening the proceedings, the Prince of Wales said : — Your Royal Highness, 
My Lords and Gentlemen, you must permit me to say what great satisfaction 
I have in presiding over you to-day, as the President of the Imperial Institute. 
I naturally recall the great interest taken in its foundation and fortunes by 
our late beloved Sovereign. As you know, I have had many opportunities of 
witnessing the practical interest ever taken in your proceedings by the King, 
and I hope that you will also consider that I have not been myself entirely 
unmindful of your interests. It, therefore, gives me very great pleasure to find 
myself presiding over so important a gathering. 
For the present, I have only to inform you that matters of great importance 
connected with the Institute will be brought to your notice. I will now ask 
Lord James to explain the proposals to be submitted to you. 
Lord James of Hereford said : — Your Royal Highnesses, my Lords and Gentlemen, 
I am quite sure, Sir, that my colleagues on the Governing Body of this Institute would wish 
that the first words to be addressed to you should convey very grateful acknowledgment of 
the fact that you have accepted the Presidentship of our Institute. The objects of this 
Institute, the great interest ever taken in its fortunes by our beloved great Queen, the 
practical interest in our affairs that His Majesty has ever shown to us,— have all conduced to 
the one central feeling that you, and you alone, Sir, could fittingly occupy the Presidentship 
of the Institute. And having gratefully thanked you for this, I will now submit to the 
Governing Body matters which you have rightly described as of grave importance to the 
future fortunes of the Institute. 
In order to fully explain the nature of the suggestion — 'and it is only a suggestion — which 
I have to submit for the consideration of the Governing Body — a short retrospect will be 
necessary. It will be recollected that, by its Charter, the objects of our Institute were 
declared to be : to increase the commercial dealings of the nation ; to provide intelligence 
regarding its commerce, and to bring together the further ends of that great Empire over 
which Pier Majesty Queen Victoria had so beneficently ruled for fifty years. That was 
the primary object of our creation. But when we came into existence, acting under our 
Charter, certain other objects, which seemed to be advisable, were carried into effect ; and 
all of us, taking the responsibility of such policy, endeavoured to combine with the 
commercial objects to which I have referred, the creation of something of a popular and 
attractive nature existing within the Institute itself. That policy was one in which my 
great friend the late Lord Herschell took deep interest ; and, together with him, we 
endeavoured to carry it into effect. Well, you will recollect that some three years ago, we 
found that that portion of our policy was a failure. It had produced financial difficulties so 
great that we saw not how they could be overcome, unless certain action in a new direction 
was taken — and we took it. We were losing four or five thousand pounds a year by giving 
the public entertainments, and they were brought to an end. Then we relieved ourselves of 
great burdens by assigning to the Government a portion of our Buildings, and also our 
liabilities. As I stated last year, this change of policy has been actually and entirely 
successful, with the result that, in consequence of our exemption from pecuniary liabilities, 
our relief from the payment of about ,£4,000 a year for parochial rates, taxes, etc., and 
having our building secured to us, with external repairs and cost of heating defrayed by the 
Government, we are now in this fortunate position, — that we have an excess of income over- 
expenditure of at least £2,000 a year. We are in a financial position of thorough soundness. 
Our property is relieved of all debt, and we possess property in buildings, site and collections, 
absolutely unrivalled, with invested funds amounting to £140,000. The property at our 
disposal certainly amounts to about half-a-million of money. Being in such a satisfactory 
position, I am sure the Governing Body will agree with me that it is absolutely necessary to 
see that these great resources are not wasted. We have to carry out the primary objects of 
our Charter, and we must set ourselves to accomplish this task. And so we set to work and 
sought the aid of those who could help us most ; we appealed to Lord Salisbury, who gave 
us one of his ablest representatives ; to Mr. Chamberlain, who also nominated a representative 
of his department, whom he thought would be the most active ; to the India Office, who 
also rendered us assistance. And so we formed an Advisory Committee, with the object of 
working hard in disseminating information of commercial value. We have sought to go 
into every colony, and appeal to its Government ; and, through the Foreign Office, have 
requested our Consuls in every foreign town to disseminate amongst foreign communities a 
knowledge of our commerce. We have invoked the India Office, and have also appealed to 
the Board of Trade to see what could be done at home. 
When we approached the Board of Trade we found a strange state of things existing. 
It had formed a Consultative Committee from exactly the same sources that we had ,* it had 
also appealed to the Foreign, Colonial and India Offices for representatives. And, as we had 
appealed to the Board of Trade for assistance, so the Board of Trade appealed to the 
Institute to help them, and thus Sir Frederick Abel had actually been called upon to guide 
and assist the Board of Trade in their councils. Also, strangely enough, whilst the 
agencies were similar, the objects were precisely the same. The Authorities of the Board of 
Trade wished to go to the Colonies ; they wished to go to the Foreign Office, to the Chambers 
of Commerce here in England, to effect exactly the same objects as those which we had in 
view. The position had thus reduced itself to this : we had given up entertainments, we 
had concentrated our force upon strictly commercial intelligence objects, but now we found 
ourselves walking exactly on the same path in the same field, and appealing to the same people 
as that great and powerful body the Board of Trade. Now this is the relative position. 
The Board of Trade was a Government Department, and, as representing the nation, they 
have a great goodwill and power we do not possess ; they can speak in the name of their 
Government ; their Colonial Committee can speak in the name of the Colonial Office ; their 
Foreign Committee in the name of the Foreign Office, and so on. So, of course, this import- 
ant public body possesses great advantages over us, a semi-public body. But, whilst they have 
this goodwill and great power in comparison with us, we have a great power in comparison 
with them. We are in possession, at this moment, of an annual contribution of £2,000 from 
the Royal Commissioners for the Exhibition of 1851, which we have undertaken to devote to 
the maintenance of laboratories which, I believe, both in their guidance and results, are unique 
in acquiring scientific knowledge of commercial importance. The results of the researches 
there carried out, and of their commercial value and application, are sent out to the world 
through our Commercial Intelligence Department. Well, the Board of Trade is wanting in 
such a Scientific and Technical Department. We have, beyond this, a magnificent group of 
forty-two collections, representing the products of our great dependency, India, and of all 
our different Colonies — a collection unrivalled in the world, because there is no other empire 
which can secure such a gathering of products from its great constituent bodies. There is 
also still vacant space in the galleries at the disposal of the Imperial Institute to extend the 
scope of our operations. 
Now, Sir, what is the result of all this? We are in direct competition with the Nation 
through the Board of Trade ; we find ourselves in danger of being beaten wherever we go. 
Now, they, on the other hand, require assistance to make their action perfect and complete, 
and what they — the more fortunate Board of Trade — require, is the means of forming a 
depot, a Clearing-house of Commercial Products ; a Sampling-house ; this we have at our 
disposal, while they possess a powerful agency which we do not. And now, Sir, we, who 
have charge of the immediate action of the Institute, find ourselves with its great objects in 
view r , and these great means of carrying them out ; but, at the same time, face to face with a 
competition against which, speaking frankly, we shall have great difficulty in successfully 
contending. It is a useless competition, and an unsatisfactory competition, even if we 
succeeded, but it is more useless and more unsatisfactory if we make the attempt to succeed 
and then fail. Speaking for Sir Frederick Abel and myself, we have come to the conclusion, 
in considering how best the purposes for which the Institute was founded can be carried into 
effect, that it is our duty to submit to the Governing Body of the Institute, for consideration, 
two proposals which will, we believe, best carry out the objects to which I have referred. 
Well, the first of these proposals is that this great property, with the resources for the 
attainment of its great objects in view, shall be presented to the Nation. We ask to present 
it to the Nation, for whose benefit the Institute came into existence. We think it should be 
presented so that the Governing Body shall be able to pass over to the representatives of 
the Nation — the Government — this great property, valuable, unburdened, full of power and 
utility, for the purpose of carrying out the objects for which the Imperial Institute 
was founded. 
But I may state to you that, in our opinion, it should not be an unconditional gift. 
There are attached certain trusts, which are in the nature of so-called charitable trusts. This 
Institute was founded for the purpose of specially benefiting the Colonies and Dependencies. 
These benefits must still be retained. It must be a term of the transfer that the Colonial and 
Indian interests shall be protected fully and never lost sight of in carrying out the change. 
We now ask you to reflect seriously upon what can be said in respect of these 
propositions. We should not have ventured to resolve them into their present shape if we 
had not had one object in view — that greater utility should be given to the Institute, and that 
the Colonies and Dependencies of the Empire should receive more benefit than they reap 
at present. Taking into consideration all that exists, we believe that by adopting the 
proposals I have suggested to you, great benefit will be conferred on the Nation, in the 
interests of its trade and commerce, and in the spread of its commercial prosperity, by 
making this great agency receive within itself new life and power by conferring upon it 
Government responsibility. 
I hope that if your resolution should be that it is desirable to take this course, that 
the Government will be disposed to consider the offer in a generous spirit. I know that it has 
been found necessary to take you somewhat by surprise, but it seems, so far as I can 
judge, that it will be necessary, before this transfer can be made, that a private bill should 
be passed through Parliament, and when that takes place, any exceptions which might be 
made to the proposal will be fully considered. 
I do not know whether I need mention individuals, but upon receiving intimation from 
two of our body on whose judgment I place much value — Sir Henry Fowler and Lord 
Rothschild — that they could not attend this meeting, I thought it advisable to tell them the 
nature of the proposition which would be made, and I have received from both of them 
letters very strongly approving of the suggested course. 
There only remains for me to say one word more. I hope you will forgive me if I refer 
to myself. I was one of those, who in a country-house in Scotland in 1S86, took part in 
resolving the idea of an Imperial Institute. During the lifetime of the late Lord Herschell 
I gave such assistance as I could to the Governing Body. Since his death I have taken the 
present responsibility which has been thrown upon me, and it is a responsibility I could never 
have borne but for the generous and devoted assistance of my friend Sir Frederick Abel. 
Occupying the position on the Governing Body -which we do, we naturally entertain feelings 
almost of affection towards the Imperial Institute, and I say, speaking for both of us, that, 
having given our very best consideration to this matter, and to the future of the Institute, we 
feel that in loyalty to this body, we are entitled to commend, as we do commend, this 
proposition to your Royal Highness and to the Governing Body. 
Having been invited by His Royal Highness the President to address the Governors, the 
Lord Chancellor said : — It will be impossible for me to address you, Sir, on the present 
occasion without giving voice to the sentiment, which I am sure we all feel, that it is a matter 
of hearty congratulation that we should find you at our head on this occasion, after you have 
given the most conclusive proof of your interest in all that binds the Empire together, by the 
long voyage you have taken, and by the labours you have gone through, and it is with the 
heartiest congratulations of everyone here that we welcome you back to these shores, which 
your position and your personal qualifications have done so much to adorn. 
With reference to the Resolution which has been placed in my hands, I really do not 
think, after the statement which has been made to you by my noble friend, that it is necessary 
for me to go into the particulars whereby that Resolution should be commended. I suppose 
